After an evening of thought I decided to put my thoughts to paper regarding the University of
Nebraska and the Bo Pelini ending. I know many people will find things to disagree with me
about but this was not intended to provoke debate or anything of that nature. This is simply
how I feel and how I felt watching Nebraska football over the last few years . My former
teammate, Adam Carriker, inspired me to write this out after I read a Facebook post he put
out shortly after the firing of coach Pelini. This is not something I have ever done but in light of
the current circumstances surrounding Nebraska football I figured I would give it a shot.
Born and Raised in Nebraska
I grew up on a farm, and later, a small town in Nebraska. I can remember from around the
age of 6 years old becoming obsessed with Nebraska football mainly because my friends I
played with were Husker fans. My father was a farmer not a sports guy. He grew up on a farm
and didn't play sports so it was nothing that he pushed or cultivated in our household. I can
remember my Saturdays most of the time being spent on a tractor and listening to Nebraska
games and post game interviews. Whenever they were on TV I was right there watching. To
this day I can recite the players who wore that N on their helmet from All Americans to the
walk on guys who fought their way and earned a spot and the right to be on the field at
memorial stadium. I would carry my Nebraska football with the Herbie Husker emblem on
everywhere I went on the farm even though it got in the way of chores (sorry dad I had a plan
haha). That ball was thrown off a barn or thrown as far and high as I could to go track it down
and I would envision I just made the game winning catch in front of the sea of red or the
orange bowl to win the national championship. I was always thinking Nebraska football to
point maybe obsessed but no doubt passionate. I would look through the media guides and
read guys bios, where they were from, how big of a school did they go to, what was their
height,weight,and speed to see just how big and fast I would have to be to live the dream. The
guys on the roster from small town Nebraska gave me hope that I could do it if they could do
it. Its important to remember Nebraska had not won a national championship since the early
70's at that time so I was envisioning helping Nebraska win a national championship for first
time in almost 20 years. I didn't want to play for Nebraska because they won a national
championship every year I wanted to play for Nebraska for one reason only, coach Tom
Osborne and his program. Coach Osborne was a soft spoken and respectful guy who got the
most out of his players and I wanted to be part of that more than just winning 9 games every
year. The program was first class not because of championships won but because of him,his
staff, and their relationship with the state of Nebraska. When Nebraska finally broke thru and
won the national championship in 1994 I was as happy for coach Osborne as the team. When
you treat people right and with respect you tend to have support and people pulling for you. I
played running back and linebacker in 8 man football during high school so recruiters weren't
beating down my door. I received letters from Nebraska, Iowa st, Kansas st, Colorado st,
Missouri, and actually received my first scholarship offer from Kansas. I took the visit and
knew as soon as they walked me directly to the Allen fieldhouse, where they played
basketball, this wasn't an option! I didnt want to go to a school where expectations were so
low that people got excited if you just won "some games". I want to compete with some of the
best and play against the best because that's what competition is all about. Along with that I
knew there would be pressure to live up to lofty standards set by many before me and I was
OK with that. I would end up walking on at Nebraska and earning a scholarship after 8
months on campus and started my last 3 years at outside linebacker. My career was a roller
coaster of highs and lows on the field. We were one win shy of being in the 1999 national
championship game and to this day I believe we were the best team in the country that year.
We throttled a talented and defending national championship Tennessee team in the fiesta
bowl in coach Frank Solich's second season after taking over for coach Osborne. We would
end up playing in the Rose Bowl against Miami for the national championship two years later
and got beat by a much more talented Miami team that we simply could not match up with. My
senior year was a 77 year and that was something no one ever imagined would or could
happen at Nebraska. It's because of this year I can talk with more credibility as to what went
on with media or fan scrutiny that this group felt like they were under in the Bo era. I saw
player interviews where they talked about the program and expectations can be too much or
can wear on a player and winning 9 games is better than most programs do. Well I'm here to
tell you that as a competitor you don't go to those places where winning is just good enough!
You chose Nebraska to play in big games and hopefully win championships. Our 2002 team
didn't blame we took responsibility and said man everyone is right we aren't playing up to the
expectations that others before us help set. We never felt like poor me. Instead we always
had a feeling of we are letting people down before us that shed blood, sweat, and tears to get
this program sustained credibility. It's called culture and tradition and many guys before us
worked their tails off to get it to the level and is why it was hard for our team. We never
accepted losing or had moral victories. To our coaches credit they never talked about the
pressure or brought up the media or tried to portray to us "it's us against everyone else" or
made us think fans and media were out to get us. We were bringing on the the scrutiny with
our poor play. We took responsibility as coaches and players! We tried to solve the problems
we just weren't as talented as the teams before us plain and simple.
The Pelini Era
I like many Husker fans were excited when Nebraska moved on from Bill Callahan.
THe program and culture had changed dramatically and it wasn't entirely his fault. He had no
clue what the “Nebraska way” was. The blueprint had been set and placed in front of him and
he ignored it and thought another way would work...it didnt. I thought Bo Pelini was the right
hire at that time mainly because he had been there before for one year in 2003 and saw what
the expectation level was and just how things operated. In addition he brought a toughness
that the program was lacking under Callahan and Cosgrove. I am thankful to Bo what he
accomplished especially early on in his tenure because the program was spiraling downward.
I was so sick of losing under Callahan and getting embarrassed by programs like Kansas that
the measuring stick for me became a "just win" type of mindset while ignoring the profanity
laced sideline show that would eventually become hazardous to our program. Once I stepped
back from this starvation for getting back to winning i realized every time Nebraska plays on tv
THE University of Nebraska is represented on tv. Unfortunately we were gaining more
attention for the sideline show than anything on the field. The Bill Callahan era ending was so
abysmal that part of me feels like I sold my soul for a "just win baby" mindset and that didn't
last long. I realized the Nebraska child still was inside me and remembering what made me
love Nebraska such as respect,character, and attitude. I had a more worldly view than a lot of
people in regards to the perception of our program. At the time I played in the NFL and we
always gather around the tv and watch games together and talk about one another's
programs good and bad. Guys from all over the country and different programs assembled
and talked college football. It got to the point where after a big loss the first thing said to me
was " man what's wrong with your head coach why is he so angry all the time? I can't believe
the university puts up with that". That's a natural response after a team loses but it eventually
got to the point where people would start to say the same thing to me even after a win! The
focus of Nebraska football was no longer on the "N" on the helmet or the kids but on the face
of the coach spitting out fbombs and swinging hats at referees like a toddler who left the
store without a toy. I supported the kids but wearing my Nebraska gear would automatically
bring up the Bo Pelini conversation....i was tired of it. While I played professionally I didn't
have the time to immerse myself in Nebraska football besides watching games on Saturday.
After I retired and had time to watch and track in more detail these past 2 seasons it was
obvious I could not back this coach anymore. Sideline actions aside, a leaked tape dissing the
fan base and daring the university to fire you will not rally anyone. It was at that moment I
heard the first leaked audio tape I knew where Bo Pelini stood. I couldn't and wouldn't stand
by him. The quote "let's see where this program is without me" made me laugh. Well Bo I
would say the program was built up just fine without you and actually was built up too much
for you. Nebraska was classy you were not.Nebraska was respectful and you were not. It was
hard because many players I love and respect really like Bo so I bit my tongue and didn't say
much. It was obvious to me the pressure was too great for him. He is a defensive coordinator
and not a head coach and there's nothing wrong with that. Most of life is knowing who you are
and not trying to be something you are not. I find it hard to believe when someone takes a job
at Nebraska you don't know the expectations are high! When it came to games I was
frustrated like everyone else getting blown out in big games on national tv because you
realize it's the best exposure you can get for recruiting. Not only was Nebraska getting blown
out by teams with equal talent but more importantly were coming off as a place with no
composure and to an extent dysfunction. When I say "our program" it's not the university of
Bo Pelini and that's how it felt at times. We win as a program and lose as a program. No one
is bigger than the program and with the second audio released it sounded like he didn't get
the patting on the back on a regular basis he wanted. When you are an employee you do
what your job title says. Your boss can act toward you however he or she sees fit.These kids
should have been recruited to play for not just you (Bo) but the university of Nebraska and the
other dynamic, the state of Nebraska. It's not like that everywhere else but everywhere else
also doesn't own the longest sellout streak in college football! You have to really work hard to
get Nebraska people to have an issue with you. It's a state made up of blue
collar,considerate, and reserved people. I believe there never was the acceptance by Bo in
terms of the fans importance to Nebraska football as well as the talent the state offered from
the high school kids. I began to get to know some of the coaches in the state over the past
year and was concerned and shocked by the things I heard. I heard kids no longer grow up
dreaming of playing for Nebraska anymore!......what? my head exploded! They said kids
watch other colleges and many have seen Nebraska not recruit the kids in the state so they
look elsewhere earlier and earlier. The past 3 Gatorade players of the year in Nebraska are
not wearing our uniform and that's a big problem! These kids go on and don't just play they
excel other places. Drew Ott a defensive end from small town Nebraska should not be starting
at Iowa making all conference and Harrison Philips from Omaha should not be contributing as
a true freshman out at Stanford! The current Gatorade player of the year is verbally committed
to Wyoming. The arrogance or incompetence of the previous staff I believe lifted their noses
in the air to the state of Nebraska, the fans, high school coaches, and kids. The crazy thing is
those kids wanted to play at Nebraska and weren't given the chance. Listen I know football
was invented in Ohio (sarcasm Íž) but Nebraska had a huge hand in the evolution of football
and tradition of the game and set the bar when it comes to fan base support. We know
football please don't act like we don't! As you can see I'm sensitive to my state and I grew up
watching it done the Nebraska way and it works. Those trophies that the previous staff walked
by everyday were there for a reason. Often times I wished they would have just displayed the
trophies that were won since 2007 and see if the arrogance level changed a little and brought
some back down to earth. We all know the best recruiting tool is winning and winning 9
games a year is good enough at a lot of places and with more composure I believe it would
have still been good enough at Nebraska. You must understand the university is selling itself
every time they are in the public eye not just to recruits but potential students from all over the
country. The president and AD must protect that brand it is their priority...... as it should be.
The primary concern for most fans is wins and losses but realize even when we were winning
it sure didn't feel like we were. I had countless people in the NFL and around the country
when we traveled utter this phrase to me "man I would never let my son play at Nebraska for
that guy". I can't say when I removed my big red pride I blamed them. Would I want my son
being belittled and spit all over on national tv for all his family and friends to see? No thanks!
Dont get me wrong I played for tough coaches like Bill Parcells. He was very hard on his
players and assistants but often saw him point the finger at himself. Bill was as tough of a
coach as there was and he didn't throw fits on game day. He found other ways to get his point
across. Coming off the field you either caught the glare or a quick one liner or had your
backup go in and play. Pretty subtle but large points were made! Composure goes a long way
in allowing your team to play relaxed and confident. There are many ways to teach young
men and choosing to do it week in and week out on national tv is about as bad as it gets. In
the NFL our coaches were hardest on us during the week in practice and then had the
confidence in our work to allow us to play on Sunday and always told they were to help not
distract. Guess what it worked! There is enough stress with playing this game without
worrying about getting screamed at as you run off the field so you can't put all the blame on
the media and fans when it comes to pressure the players felt. I don't know how you put
together a staff of coaches with any self worth who put up with being made a fool as a grown
man on tv. Bo was right in the leaked audio that sometimes it's about more than the money.
Those coaches deserved better while on display for the entire country to see. The very
respect Bo coveted from the AD and university he was not showing his own staff! I'm sure
many will say his coaches and players love him and would do anything for him. That's what
usually happens when you rally around your leader no matter what and from all accounts Bo
professed his love for his guys and that will get anyone on board. I do believe he cares for
"his" guys but never opened himself to caring for the university, state and it's people. I'm not
going to go into X's and O's and things I agree with or disagreed with as that's not the point of
all of this. My main point is I have seen Nebraska football and know what it feels like to be
proud to wear that Nebraska gear out with pride. I strongly believe those days will be back
upon us with the hire of Mike Riley. I'm not sure what the win/loss ratio will be but I can
assure you I won't feel like we lose even when we win.